Soccer: Real Madrid
Real Madrid, Juventus set for Vegas
The Merengues, who convincingly conquered Barcelona to claim Spain's La Liga title, their 32nd national championship, will face off against the Italian champion in Las Vegas.
Juventus, which last weekend clinched its record 28th Serie A title -- and first in nine seasons -- will take on Real on Aug. 5 at 36,800-seat Sam Boyd Stadium as part of the World Football Challenge of summer friendlies, local organizers announced. Juve, from Turin, is unbeaten in Italian league play (22-0-15) with one game remaining.
Tickets range from $68 to $253 and go on sale Thursday at 10 a.m. through UNLV's online ticket department or by calling (855) 258-5425 or (702) 739-3267.
Real Madrid and the Galaxy face off Aug. 2 at Home Depot Center. Real has not yet announced either game nor its preseason plans. The club last year played two games in Southern California -- against the Galaxy at the Coliseum and Guadalajara at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego -- and a third game on the East Coast.
GALAXY: A history vs. Real Madrid
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesA.J. DeLaGarza of the Galaxy reacts as the ball bounces in the net after a goal by Jose Callejon of Real Madrid during the Herbalife World Challenge at the L.A. Coliseum on July 16, 2011.The Galaxy's Aug. 2 friendly against Real Madrid at Home Depot Center, which was announced Monday, will be the fourth meeting between the teams as Jose Mourinho brings the Merengues back to Southern California for the third straight preseason.
The last two were at far bigger venues -- 2010 at the Rose Bowl and last year at the Coliseum -- but this year's battle returns to cozy Home Depot Center, site of the first encounter, back in 2005.
Real Madrid is expected to play more games while in America, and soccer blog The Offside Rules reports that it will meet AC Milan in an Aug. 5 friendly in Las Vegas.
Here is a quick rundown of the first three Galaxy-Real Madrid games:
July 18, 2005, at Home Depot Center
Real Madrid 2, Galaxy 0
David Beckham makes his L.A. debut, in Real colors, but it's Zinedine Zidane's presence that makes this one of the most special occasions in Southern California soccer history. Zidane was mesmerizing in an hour's performance, and he set up Michael Owen's goal six minutes in. The dominance was greater than the margin of victory -- Roberto Soldado's second-half header doubled the advantage -- but L.A. clearly missed Landon Donovan, in his first year with the club, who was away on national team duty.
Att.: 27,000.
Aug. 7, 2010, at the Rose Bowl
Real Madrid 3, Galaxy 2
L.A. was on its way to an upset after Todd Dunivant and Donovan provided a two-goal lead by halftime, but then Real Madrid put in some of its bigger stars -- Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain, Xabi Alonso and Iker Casillas included -- and tore apart the Galaxy. Higuain, coming off a superb World Cup performance for Argentina, scored twice, and Xabi Alonso netted the winner in the 71st minute.
Att.: 89,134.
July 16, 2011, at the Coliseum
Real Madrid 4, Galaxy 1
Real's quality overwhelmed the Galaxy, with Jose Callejon and Joselu scoring in the 15 minutes before halftime and Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in the 15 minutes after the break to roll up a 4-0 lead. Fabio Coentrăo, newly arrived from Benfica, was the star among stars, repeatedly probing the L.A. defense and combining to create chances -- if not for Josh Saunders' and Brian Perk's play in the nets, Real might have scored seven or eight. Adam Cristman tallied in the 67th for the Galaxy.
Att.: 56,211.
No. 11: Real Madrid returns
Kirby Lee/US PresswireCristiano Ronaldo was one of many stars Real Madrid brought to SoCal last summer.Real Madrid made another pilgrimage to L.A., a treat for local soccer fans, of course, if a bit of a headache for the Galaxy.
The Spanish giant is one of the world's most storied clubs, and the presence of big names Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaká, Iker Casillas, Karim Benzema, Xabi Alonso, Fabio Coentrăo, Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira, Ricardo Carvalho ... it's a dream team, really, with talent matched perhaps only by archrival Barcelona.
The Merengues' biggest star might be manager Jose Mourinho, whose love affair with Southern California has brought so many great sides our way. He annually brings his squad -- Chelsea, then Inter Milan, now Real Madrid -- to Beverly Hills and UCLA for preseason training, and we get a game or two out of it, too.
There's the problem. The Galaxy played Real Madrid last year in front of 89,134 last year at the Rose Bowl. This year's game, a 4-1 Real win at the Coliseum, drew just 56,211 -- a game against Guadalajara in San Diego no doubt siphoning off the crowd. But what's more worrisome to L.A. officials is that Mourinho and Co. consider SoCal a second home, and other global giants have taken notice.
“In the end, to be honest, I can't have Real Madrid coming here every year,” Galaxy president of business operations Tom Payne, whose team also played a summer friendly against Manchester City, said back in May. “I told them that. It means the other guys don't come. They're so … territorial. Like, Man United won't come [to L.A. if Real Madrid does]. That's just the way it works.”
Whether that sways Mourinho is another matter. The man loves The Beverly Hills Hotel, loves the facilities at UCLA, loves the weather and loves the atmosphere. It's perfect.
GALAXY: Man City friendly not 'that important'
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesManchester City coach Roberto Mancini, left, calls Sunday's game against the Galaxy a "very, very important game," an assessment Bruce Arena, the L.A. coach, likely disagrees with.MARINA DEL REY -- Bruce Arena has seen how badly Major League Soccer's clubs are being pummeled by European royalty, but in preseason form, during the World Football Challenge series of exhibitions, and his reaction is simple. Who cares?
He talked about it at a sparsely attended news conference in advance of the Galaxy's friendly Sunday afternoon against Manchester City FC at Home Depot Center, making it clear -- if it weren't already -- where this game stands among his team's priorities.
“I don't think it's that important,” Arena said Thursday afternoon. “I think this is an exhibition in a tournament where we've brought some of the great club teams in the world to the United States to play MLS club teams and others, and it's to show these great teams and players. The competition itself is not as important as the ability to bring the clubs here and let our fans see these great players and clubs.”
That's one way to spin the Seattle Sounders' 7-0 loss Wednesday night to Manchester United, or the Galaxy's 4-1 loss last weekend to Real Madrid at the Coliseum. The New England Revolution also lost, 4-1, to Manchester United. In 13 friendlies against European clubs -- two of them, D.C. United's and Portland's losses to Ajax Amsterdam, from May -- MLS clubs are 2-8-1 and have been outscored, 27-9.
The only wins were San Jose's victory July 12 over West Bromwich Albion and Philadelphia's win Wednesday night over Everton, second-or-lower-tier English Premier League clubs, in games that are not part of the WFC.
Vancouver lost Monday to Manchester City, and on Wednesday Houston was beaten by Bolton and Portland lost a thriller to West Brom.
“The results haven't been good, there's no question about that,” Arena said. “I think it's a difficult competition to gauge some of the results. I do believe if we played Real Madrid 10 times, they'd probably beat us 11. I'm not embarrassed by our performance. [Real Madrid] is a very good team.
“I think the purpose of these exhibitions are exhibiting these great teams and players and let both teams play and enjoy the match. To me, the result is not that critical.”
GALAXY: The big, simple difference
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesDavid Beckham congratulates players from Real Madrid during their 4-1 victory over the Galaxy on Saturday.The bliss for soccer fans when Real Madrid, or any team of such caliber, comes to visit -- not that that list is a lengthy one -- has nothing to do with whether the friendlies are competitive (the more so the better, of course) nor some desire to see how our local boys can stand up to so mighty a force.
It's in watching in amazement at the things these players can do.
David Beckham has brilliant touch -- nobody plays a better ball over distance -- and Thierry Henry remains a regal figure with sublime skill and instinct, but games like Saturday's at the Coliseum, in which Real Madrid throttled the Galaxy, 4-1, are a reminder of how far Major League Soccer still must go to be considered a first-class league.
Consider: Real had been training all of four days before facing L.A. Two sessions every day. Yet not only were the Merengues vastly more talented, more dynamic -- more everything, really -- than MLS's No. 1 club, they were sharper and in better form, which they shouldn't be this early in their preseason.
The difference is, quite simply, quality. The Galaxy have one aging world-class star (Beckham), one player who could be a star in Europe in the right situation, such as Everton (Landon Donovan), and a defender with a decade and a half's worth of experience on Europe's fields (Gregg Berhalter), which shined through on several of Real's repeated forays into L.A.'s box.
Most impressive for the Galaxy were Josh Saunders and Brian Perk, the Nos. 2 and 3 goalkeepers, who each played for a half. Both made big saves -- the best: Saunders laying out to parry Marcelo in the 36th minute, Perk knocking Mesut Özil's blast wide in the 70th -- and did well on balls into their box. Without them, maybe this ends 7-1 or 8-1.
Galaxy's Juninho giddy to face countrymen
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesThe Galaxy's Juninho, left, was pushed on this play by Brazilian countryman, Kaka, but the two later exchanged jerseys.LOS ANGELES -- Galaxy midfielder Juninho was thankful in defeat Saturday night, citing the experience gained in playing against one of the world's top clubs. Perhaps giddy is a better description.
Juninho grinned from ear to ear when asked whom he exchanged jerseys with following the Galaxy's 4-1 loss to Real Madrid at the Memorial Coliseum.
"Kaká and two other Brazilians," Juninho said, his eyes lighting up.
Juninho, 22, is a product of the renowned Sao Paulo youth ranks. So is Real Madrid's Kaká, one of the Brazilian national team's recent jewels. They never played together and had never met before Saturday, but Juninho said Friday he would pursue his countryman's jersey at all costs.
Both players were on the pitch together in the first half before Kaká, and eight other Real Madrid players, exited at the break. A Juninho giveaway pass, to Kaká of all players, led to Real Madrid's first goal. Juninho's only shot attempt of the night sailed high.
"I think the experience was good," Juninho said. "We lost and we didn't play like we wanted to, but the experience was the most important thing."
Real Madrid's brilliance is shining through
Real Madrid, even without stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso in the starting lineup, would add another goal to lead the Galaxy, 2-0, at the half in their World Football Challenge opener Saturday night. There were plenty of oohs and aahs but, unfortunately for the locals, they came as a product of Madrid's brilliance.
It might have been an uglier halftime score if not for a handful of saves from Galaxy goalkeeper Josh Saunders. Callejón had a favorable one-on-one chance against Saunders in the 10th minute but had his shot blocked. Later, Saunders left his feet to make a stop on a missile from Marcelo.
The Galaxy, despite fielding its usual starters, had little going offensively. David Beckham had two opportunities on set pieces but neither threatened Iker Casillas.
A shot from 21-year-old striker Joselu deflected off Beckham and sneaked past Saunders, giving Madrid a 2-0 lead in the 40th minute. It produced another flurry of camera flashes and resonating chants of "Ma-drid! Ma-drid!"
GALAXY: 'Emotional' Beckham takes on old clubs
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesDavid Beckham says it will be emotional to play his old clubs, Real Madrid and Manchester United, in exhibitions over the next few weeks.CARSON -- David Beckham was talking about the first time -- the only time -- he has stepped on a field against Manchester United, the club where he grew up, first found his footing and became a star.
It was only 16 months or so ago, when he was on loan to AC Milan, and it was twice, three weeks apart, in each leg of a UEFA Champions League round-of-16 clash. The second leg, in his old stamping grounds at United's Old Trafford, is the game that resonates with Beckham, and it has nothing to do with the game itself, a 4-0 Man United rout.
It was the experience of being the enemy at home.
“It was very emotional,” said Beckham, who was warmly received by Man United's fans that evening. “It was a real emotional moment to be back at Manchester United for the first time in seven years. It was an emotional time. I was glad I got that one out of the way.”
He'll revisit those passions in not quite a couple of weeks, at Major League Soccer's July 27 All-Star Game in Harrison, N.J., where MLS's best will battle Manchester United. And he's expecting something similar Saturday night when the Galaxy takes on Real Madrid -- another of Beckham's former clubs -- in a World Football Challenge friendly at the Coliseum.
Beckham has a keen sense of his sport's history and the importance of its greatest institutions, and he's humbled that he has had the fortune of playing for (and becoming part of the identity of) two of the world's legendary clubs. Taking them on stirs the emotions.
“I spent four amazing years at Real Madrid ...,” Beckham said earlier this week. “To be facing Real Madrid for the first time since I left, it's emotional. You get attached to a club, you get attached to people at a club.”
On Friday he spoke about his four seasons in Madrid, from 2003 through 2007 -- bridging his time with Manchester United with his Galaxy tenure -- and how exciting it will be to play against another club that resides deep within his heart.
“It's exciting for the fans to see great players like Cristiano [Ronaldo] and Iker [Casillas] and Kaká, the players they've got,” said Beckham, who missed last year's Galaxy-Real Madrid game while rehabilitating a torn Achilles' tendon. “It's going to be a competitive game, I'm sure. Real Madrid don't come over and Jose Mourinho doesn't put a team out that's going to [mess] around. It's going to be a good game.
“Personally, I've got a lot of great memories for playing for Real Madrid, and this is the first time I've played them since I left.”
The best of those memories?
“In the first year, playing with the likes of [Zinedine] Zidane, Ronaldo, Raul, Roberto Carlos, [Luis] Figo -- all these great players. Being able to play with them in the same team. It doesn't get any better than that.”
Real Madrid 'at home' in L.A.
CENTURY CITY -- Real Madrid began its preseason work Tuesday morning at UCLA, the first steps, the Merengues hope, toward taking down European champion Barcelona in Spain's La Liga and UEFA's Champions League in the coming season.
They'll be in L.A. until July 22, with games Saturday night against the Galaxy at the Coliseum and next Wednesday against Guadalajara at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium, before heading to Philadelphia for another match, back to Europe for matches in Germany and England, then off to China for more training and a couple of games.
Superstar manager Jose Mourinho has a serious crush on Southern California: This is the second straight year he's brought Real to L.A., and he previously held preseason camp in Westwood -- with his teams always squired next door in Beverly Hills -- with Chelsea and Inter Milan.
“We are very happy to come, first of all because Los Angeles has become our home, in terms of preseason,” said Mourinho, who won just one of the three desired trophies -- the Copa del Rey, Spain's premier cup competition -- in his first season at Real Madrid. “We feel at home.”
What's the allure?
“The training conditions are good,” he said. “The freedom that we have is also good, because in Europe our life is difficult. Socially, it's difficult. Here the players, they feel some freedom. They can walk in the street, they can be together, they can share some time together, not like in Europe, where they close each other in their own room and they cannot communicate.
“At this moment, I think it's important for the players to build team spirit, to let [new] players come into the group. For me, this is an important part of the situation.”
So are the matches, for which Mourinho, goalkeeper Iker Casillas and forward Cristiano Ronaldo joined Galaxy coach Bruce Arena, forward Landon Donovan and midfielder David Beckham to discuss Tuesday afternoon at Creative Artists Agency. They're part of the World Football Challenge, a series of exhibitions CAA and Major League Soccer, along with Soccer United Marketing, MLS's marketing arm, are producing.
Also part of the 14-match series: the Galaxy's friendly July 24 against England's Manchester City FC.
“It's exactly what you need, it's exactly what you want,” Mourinho said. “I don't like preseason matches to win 10-nil. I don't like preseason matches to have some fun. I like serious matches, and they always give us that [in the U.S.] ... Of course, it's not the priority, but of course everybody wants to win and everybody tries to win every single match, every single tournament.”
Real Madrid arrives Monday at UCLA, and it's final roster for preseason camp -- and matches in Southern California against the Galaxy and Guadalajara -- has been released. There are changes from the roster unveiled last month, with two new arrivals and several additions from the Spanish giant's youth and reserve teams.
Real will train in Westwood for 11 days and play friendlies July 16 against the Galaxy at the Coliseum and July 20 against Guadalajara at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
Added to the list are Portuguese defender Fabio Coentrăo, acquired from Benfica, and French teen Raphael Varane, a defender who just arrived from Lyon, plus reserve-team defender Jose Nacho Fernandez and youth-team goalkeepers Jesus Fernandez Collado and Tomas Mejias, defender Jose Casado and forwards Jese Rodriguez and Jose Luis Mato San Martin.
Eight first-team players are not on the travel list, including midfielders Angel Di Maria and Fernando Gago and forward Gonzalo Higuain, who are with host Argentina's national team at Copa America, South America's nations championship.
CHIVAS USA: Red Bulls clash will not move
Major League Soccer looked into moving Chivas USA's game July 16 against the New York Red Bulls because it conflicted with the Galaxy's friendly against Real Madrid about a dozen miles up the Harbor Freeway.
The Goats weren't interested.
Club co-owner and president Antonio Cué said Saturday night that Chivas would keep its date with the Red Bulls and he hoped the game, one of the big draws on the team's calendar, would draw an ample crowd.
“We need to do what we need to do,” Cué said after Chivas' 1-1 draw with the Chicago Fire at Home Depot Center. “I'm sure Real Madrid will draw a lot of people, but we just have to continue and have more fans come in.”
The conflict means fans -- and media, too -- must decide between heading to the Coliseum to see the Spanish giant and its stars, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká, in a preseason game against the Galaxy for the second straight year or coming to HDC to watch Thierry Henry's second L.A. visit since joining New York last summer.
The Galaxy game begins at 7 p.m., and Chivas' kicks off at 7:30. It's not an ideal situation, surely, and the Goats seem certain to lose more than a few spectators to the game up the 110.
“Unfortunately, it came at the same time that day. [The league] thought about moving it,” Cué said. “I said: 'If you want to move, you can move the other game.' Why would we move our game? ... So, hopefully, we draw some people, and, more than that, hopefully, we'll get three points.”
Real Madrid to bring star-studded team
The Merengues arrive July 11 in Westwood, where Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho will lead training sessions for the second straight year, and have two matches planned in Southern California, on July 16 against the Galaxy at the Coliseum and July 20 against Guadalajara at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
Here's the list:
GOALKEEPERS
Antonio Adán (Spain)
Iker Casillas (Spain)
DEFENDERS
Raul Albiol (Spain)
Alvaro Arbeloa (Spain)
Ezequiel Garay (Argentina)
David Mateos (Spain)
Pepe (Portugal)
Sergio Ramos (Spain)
Ricardo Carvalho (Portugal)
Marcelo Viera (Brazil)
MIDFIELDERS
Hamit Altintop (Turkey)
José Callejón (Spain)
Lassana Diarra (France)
Roysten Drenthe (Netherlands)
Fernando Gago (Argentina)
Sergio Canales (Spain)
Kaká (Brazil)
Sami Khedira (Germany)
Pedro León (Spain)
Mesut Özil (Germany)
Nuri Sahin (Turkey)
Xabi Alonso (Spain)
FORWARDS
Karim Benzema (France)
Esteban Granero (Spain)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
Real Madrid's UCLA arrival: 7-11
It's not news, aside from the date: The Merengues' friendlies with the Galaxy (July 16 at the Coliseum) and Guadalajara (July 20 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego) were announced last month, and manager Jose Mourinho has brought each of his teams -- Chelsea and Inter Milan before Real -- to UCLA for preseason.
Real Madrid spent preseason last year in Westwood and beat the Galaxy, 3-2, in front of 89,134 at the Rose Bowl.
Real Madrid's release notes that UCLA “boasts 173 buildings and 170 hectares in its campus, including two football pitches, a baseball field, a basketball arena and a gym.”
The Spaniards will head to Philadelphia following the game with Chivas to play the Union on July 23, return to Madrid the following day, and travel to China on July 30 for games against two Chinese clubs.
MLS looking into Galaxy-Chivas conflict
That's the situation after Major League Soccer, through its marketing arm, confirmed an evening start on July 16 at the Coliseum for the Galaxy's clash with the Spanish giant.


The Galaxy-Real Madrid game is part of this summer's World Football Challenge, featuring MLS clubs against big-name European opposition in a series of exhibitions produced by Soccer United Marketing, MLS's marketing arm, and CAA Sports.
Major League Soccer officials responded to an interview request with a statement: “We are aware of the situation. At this time, we are analyzing options.”
Primary among those options would appear to be moving Chivas' game from Saturday night to Sunday, July 17. An MLS spokeswoman said in an email Friday that the “overlap is still being examined.”
Tom Payne, the Galaxy's president of business operations, acknowledged that the conflict was considered “for a minute, to be frank” while setting up the date.
“At the end of the day, sometimes these games are almost dictated for you,” he said. “This is the time Real Madrid could play. … We certainly didn't mean it to fall on that day. We didn't have any choice in the end.”
Real Madrid, which will be conducting preseason training in Southern California for the second straight year under noted Angelenophile Jose Mourinho, had strict timeframes with which to work. The Merengues also are playing Guadalajara on July 20 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, a date that doesn't please the Galaxy.
Guadalajara-Real Madrid: It's official
The anticipated friendly between Guadalajara and Real Madrid is a done deal, set for Wednesday, July 20, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, with kickoff at 8 p.m. The game comes four days after Real meets the Galaxy at the Coliseum.
Guadalajara also will face Barcelona, on Aug. 3 in Miami Gardens, Fla.
The match is part of the 2011 World Football Challenge series of exhibitions this summer in North America. The schedule so far (all times Pacific):
- July 13: New England Revolution vs. Manchester United (England) at Foxborough, Mass., 5 p.m.
- July 16: Galaxy vs. Real Madrid at the Coliseum, Los Angeles, 7 p.m.
- July 18: Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Manchester City (England) at Vancouver, British Columbia, 7 p.m.
- July 20: Guadalajara (Mexico) vs. Real Madrid (Spain) at Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, 8 p.m.
- July 23: Chicago Fire vs. Manchester United (England) at Chicago, 2 p.m.
- July 24: Galaxy vs. Manchester City (England) at Home Depot Center, 1 p.m.
- July 30: Barcelona (Spain) vs. Manchester United (England) at Landover, Md., 4 p.m.
- Aug. 3: Barcelona (Spain) vs. Guadalajara (Mexico) at Miami Gardens, Fla.
- Aug. 6: Barcelona (Spain) vs. America (Mexico) at Arlington, Texas, 1 p.m.
In addition, Manchester United will meet MLS's best in the league all-star game on July 27 in Harrison, N.J.
Guadalajara, the original Chivas, is one of Mexico's two biggest clubs, seen as an instrument of Mexican loyalty because of its policy of fielding only Mexican players. It's coming off a fine Clausura campaign in which it knocked off top seed UANL Tigres en route to the semifinals.
Real Madrid, one of the world's great clubs, is expected to hold preseason camp in Los Angeles -- it's manager Jose Mourinho's favorite summer venue; he previously brought Chelsea and Inter Milan to train at UCLA, and Real Madrid caused a sensation on campus last year.


ESPNLA soccer blogger Scott French recounts the top 11 stories and personalities in 2011 from the world of Southern California soccer.